Review Summary: A hodgepodge of varied tracks that will not wholly alienate or please most respective segments of Rise Against’s vast fan base.
In an interview leading up to the release of Rise Against’s latest album, lead singer Tim McIlrath was blunt about the band’s record-making process, stating in regards to what different fans expect, “There is no song for everybody.”
As a fairly dynamic band with both critical and commercial success that’s been around since just before the turn of century, this is an unsurprising problem. Since their inception, Rise Against has churned out albums ranging from gritty, hardcore punk to radio-friendly, anthemic rock, and everything in between. It’s easy to see how fans of their older work could feel alienated by their newer efforts, and certainly vice versa. The real question is how Rise Against would tackle the problem this time.
The first two tracks that were put out in the run-up to the release of “The Black Market” certainly seemed to point in a direction older fans would prefer. Lead single “I Don’t Want to Be Here Anymore” is angry, impassioned, and in the vein of the band’s work as they made the transition from their punk-rock roots to the mainstream. The next leak, “The Eco-Terrorist In Me,” has a sound that goes even further into their back catalogue. McIlrath’s distinctive screams and a frenetic pace dominate the song to an extent that we haven’t heard from Rise Against since their 2004 album, “Siren Song of the Counter Culture.”
However, the older sound of these two pieces is scarcely found anywhere else on the rest of the record, the exception being the aggressive and politically motivated “The Great Die-Off.” Much more common are pieces that tread closer to digestible hard rock than anger-driven punk. “A Beautiful Indifference” flits back and forth between a grinding bass line and sing-along choruses to create a sound that, while inoffensive, certainly isn’t boring. Similarly, “Awake Too Long” balances fast-paced guitar and drums with a slower vocal tempo, and the result is a song that sounds like a more accessible version of “Prayer of the Refugee” from the band’s 2006 album, “The Sufferer and the Witness.”
And just like there are a few songs that favor Rise Against’s old tone, a handful of tracks that opt primarily for Rise Against’s newer sound are also present on the record. These are tepid efforts like the almost sugary “Tragedy+Time” and the un-inventive “Sudden Life” that lack bite and repeat themselves to the point of annoyance.
The only song that doesn’t fit into one of those three molds is the acoustic “People Live Here” that strains to capture the same heartbreaking feeling of fan-favorite “Swing Life Away” and just falls short.
Rise Against was right -- there is no song that will please all of the band’s fans. Neither will “The Black Market,” although there are tidbits that should satisfy each group. Pick your favorite ones and pass over the rest.
